Matt 5
17 THINK NOT THAT I AM COME TO DESTROY THE LAW, OR THE PROPHETS: I AM NOT COME TO DESTROY, BUT TO FULFIL.
18 For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled.
19 Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.
20 For I say unto you, That except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven.
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Since the ones I have been debating like to use this verse a lot and I have used it in some of my teachings and I will use it now in a little bit different way.
In v. 17 Jesus Christ said he came to FULFILL the law NOT to destroy it. Did he fulfill it like he said he cane to do and if he did what does that mean? Does that mean the law is still in force if he fulfilled it???
Readng Luke 18
16 The law and the prophets were until John: since that time the kingdom of God is preached, and every man presseth into it.
17 And it is easier for heaven and earth to pass, than one tittle of the law to fail.
So here we see that the law and the prophets were until John so that would make John the last of the Old Testament prophets. Now we need to see that the law was fulfilled in Jesus Christ.
Matt 11
11 Verily I say unto you, Among them that are born of women there hath not risen a greater than John the Baptist: notwithstanding he that is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he.
12 And from the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffereth violence, and the violent take it by force.
13 For ALL THE PROPHETS AND THE LAW PROPHESIED UNTIL JOHN.
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From reading this I see that John was the last of the OT prophets and he was the greatest of them too. He is the one who heralded in the Messiah, God in human flesh. NOW this one named Jesus Christ is the first of the New Covenant prophets, he is the Prophet of prophets, the Lord of lords, the king of kings and he takes the center place of everything the word was written about, he is everything that we need or could want. The bible says John the Baptist even though he was the greatest born of women, he played second fiddle to Jesus Christ. He was not even worthy to unloose his scandal.
I have said many times over that Jesus Christ said all the law and the prophets are fulfilled in him.
In John 5:39,40
39 Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me.
40 And ye will not come to me, that ye might have life.
41 I receive not honour from men.
42 But I know you, that YE HAVE NOT THE LOVE OF GOD in you.
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When Jesus Christ said those words there wasn't anything written but the OT and it is ALL about him.
NOW we are called the body of Christ and are to be moving in his love, the love of God. Here are a few examples and there are more.
I Cor 12
27 Now ye are the body of Christ, and members in particular.
We should be walking in the love that Jesus Christ walked in.
Something else to think about while we are here, the very next chapter is called the love chapter so let's take the closing scripture from that chapter.
I Cor 13
13 And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity.
A quick comment here. Charity is Christian love as defined by the man who wrote the first dictionary. Noah Webster and faith is the substance of things hoped for based on Heb 11:1 AND the greatest here is charity. God is called love and remember that the word says faith worketh by love in Gal 5:6
Gal 5:6
6 For in Jesus Christ neither circumcision availeth any thing, nor uncircumcision; but faith which worketh by love.
The so called Hebrew Christian that I was debabing when I told him that God is called love in the bible, he didn't disagree with that BUT he said that holiness is more important or something of that effect. When a man or woman debates like that then watch out. He seemed to KNOW that holiness was more important to God than love. How he knew I don't know but he thought he knew it.
NOW let's look at the words of Jesus Christ dealing with the love of God.
Matt 5
43 Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbour, and hate thine enemy.
44 But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you;
45 That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust.
46 For if ye love them which love you, what reward have ye? do not even the publicans the same?
47 And if ye salute your brethren only, what do ye more than others? do not even the publicans so?
48 Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect.
Based on v. 48 above I want to take you to Job and God calling him a perfect and upright man, one who encheweth evil.
Job 1
1 There was a man in the land of Uz, whose name was Job; and that man was perfect and upright, and one that feared God, and eschewed evil.
8 And the LORD said unto Satan, Hast thou considered my servant Job, that there is none like him in the earth, a perfect and an upright man, one that feareth God, and escheweth evil?
Job 2
3 And the LORD said unto Satan, Hast thou considered my servant Job, that there is none like him in the earth, a perfect and an upright man, one that feareth God, and escheweth evil? and still he holdeth fast his integrity, although thou movedst me against him, to destroy him without cause.
INCREDIBLE so now let's see if we can get more insight from the three verses above.
Ezekiel 14
14 Though these three men, Noah, Daniel, and Job, were in it, they should deliver but their own souls by their righteousness, saith the Lord GOD.
15 If I cause noisome beasts to pass through the land, and they spoil it, so that it be desolate, that no man may pass through because of the beasts:
16 Though these three men were in it, as I live, saith the Lord GOD, they shall deliver neither sons nor daughters; they only shall be delivered, but the land shall be desolate.
17 Or if I bring a sword upon that land, and say, Sword, go through the land; so that I cut off man and beast from it:
18 Though these three men were in it, as I live, saith the Lord GOD, they shall deliver neither sons nor daughters, but they only shall be delivered themselves.
19 Or if I send a pestilence into that land, and pour out my fury upon it in blood, to cut off from it man and beast:
20 Though Noah, Daniel, and Job were in it, as I live, saith the Lord GOD, they shall deliver neither son nor daughter; they shall but deliver their own souls by their righteousness
Based on these scriptures I know that Abraham was counted righteous BECAUSE he believed God. So anyone who knows anything about the three men above KNOWS they were faith walkers and without faith you CANNOT please God.
James 5
11 Behold, we count them happy which endure. Ye have heard of the patience of Job, and have seen the end of the Lord; that the Lord is very pitiful, and of tender mercy
Speaking of "the patience of Job", the word says,
James 1
3 Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience.
The above scripture says, "…trying of your FAITH worketh PATIENCE…"
So we see that God was working on Job's faith. God was building more faith in Job.
Hebrews 11:6 says,
6 But WITHOUT FAITH IT IS IMPOSSIBLE TO PLEASE HIM: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.
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Matt 22
35 Then one of them, which was a lawyer, asked him a question, tempting him, and saying,
36 Master, which is the great commandment in the law?
37 Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.
38 This is the first and great commandment.
39 And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.
40 On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.
So here we see that ALL the law and the prophets hang on loving God and loving others AND we can only do those two commands IF the Lord Jesus Christ lives within. He gives us the power to love as he loved, to minister as he ministered.
Matt 7
12 Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them: for this is the law and the prophets.
This is the law of love in a nutshell. "Tberefore all things whatsoever men SHOULD do to you do ye even so to them…" NOT "what you WOULD HAVE them to do to you." That is a dangerous comment and is not true and that is in many new bibles.
Acts 13
37 But he, whom God raised again, saw no corruption.
38 BE IT KNOWN UNTO YOU THEREFORE, MEN AND BRETHREN, THAT THROUGH THIS MAN IS PREACHED UNTO YOU THE FORGIVENESS OF SINS:
39 AND BY HIM ALL THAT BELIEVE ARE JUSTIFIED FROM ALL THINGS, FROM WHICH YE COULD NOT BE JUSTIFIED BY THE LAW OF MOSES.
40 Beware therefore, lest that come upon you, which is spoken of in the prophets;
41 Behold, ye despisers, and wonder, and perish: for I work a work in your days, a work which ye shall in no wise believe, though a man declare it unto you.
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Jesus Christ did for mankind what the law of Moses could not do, AND many cannot get a hold of what God has done for mankind through the Lord Jesus Christ. He actually became a man and NOW lives within his people giving them the strength and power to do what the law couldn't do and that is really free us from sin and not just do a bunch of religious activities hoping to make it if we do good enough with the laws and the like.
Rom 3
19 Now we know that what things soever the law saith, it saith to them who are under the law: that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God.
20 Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin.
21 BUT NOW THE RIGHTEOUSNESS OF GOD WITHOUT THE LAW IS MANIFESTED, BEING WITNESSED BY THE LAW AND THE PROPHETS;
22 EVEN THE RIGHTEOUSNESS OF GOD WHICH IS BY FAITH OF JESUS CHRIST UNTO ALL AND UPON ALL THEM THAT BELIEVE: FOR THERE IS NO DIFFERENCE:
23 For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;
24 Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus:
25 Whom GOD HATH SET FORTH TO BE A PROPITIATION THROUGH FAITH IN HIS BLOOD, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God;
26 To declare, I say, at this time his righteousness: that he might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus.
27 Where is boasting then? It is excluded. By what law? of works? Nay: but by the LAW OF FAITH.
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There is a law that surpasses all laws, the law of faith since you cannot please God without it and as said before 'faith worketh by love". Just as the gospel was preached in Abraham since he was the father of the faith so here we see that God makes us righteous and whole by the blood of Jesus Christ upon all who believe FOR THERE IS NO DIFFERENCE.
Since Abraham was the father of the faith, all the law and its typologies were tied up in faith which worketh by love and many of those types and figures in the OT are finished and not needed anymore.